Jurors say man should pay for stalking Fla. woman

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) - A Florida woman won a $4.8 million verdict against a former family friend from Michigan who she says stalked and harassed her for more than seven years.

Jurors in Naples on Monday decided 72-year-old James L. Dingwall III should pay 32-year-old Shaliece Delight Hall $1.2 million in compensatory damages and $3.6 million in punitive damages.

The Naples Daily News reports Dingwall was a friend of Hall's deceased father. Dingwall didn't show up for the Aug. 31 trial.

He pleaded no contest in 2010 to misdemeanor stalking and cyberstalking charges.

Records show Dingwall sent Hall repeated emails, texts and unwanted porn in addition to showing up at the schools where she taught.

Hall's attorney says Hall's lifestyle and ability to work were restricted by Dingwall's threats.